Kornat (island)
Encyclopedia
Kornat is an island
in the Croatia
n part of the Adriatic Sea
, in central Dalmatia
. With an area of 32.44 km² it is the 16th largest island in Croatia and the largest island in the eponymous Kornati islands archipelago. It is part of the Kornati National Park, which is composed of a total of 89 islands, islets and rocks.
According to the 2001 census, the island has a population of 7, although there are no permanent settlements on the island. Kornati's coastline is 68.79 km long.
In recent history, the island became infamous as the site of what was dubbed the Kornat Island Tragedy , when a group of firefighters who were flown in as part of the 2007 coastal fires
firefighting efforts perished. Twelve out of thirteen men who found themselves surrounded by fire were killed in the event which was the biggest loss of lives in the history of Croatian firefighting.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
in the Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n part of the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
, in central Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
. With an area of 32.44 km² it is the 16th largest island in Croatia and the largest island in the eponymous Kornati islands archipelago. It is part of the Kornati National Park, which is composed of a total of 89 islands, islets and rocks.
According to the 2001 census, the island has a population of 7, although there are no permanent settlements on the island. Kornati's coastline is 68.79 km long.
In recent history, the island became infamous as the site of what was dubbed the Kornat Island Tragedy , when a group of firefighters who were flown in as part of the 2007 coastal fires
2007 Croatian coast fires
The 2007 Croatian coast fires were a series of fires that struck the Croatian coast in the summer of 2007. After a heat wave, which covered the entire Southern and Eastern Europe, the drought and southern wind helped spread the fires all over the Croatian coast, destroying a large part of the...
firefighting efforts perished. Twelve out of thirteen men who found themselves surrounded by fire were killed in the event which was the biggest loss of lives in the history of Croatian firefighting.
See also
- Kornati Islands
- List of islands of Croatia